BarcelonaYemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed this Sunday the launch of several missiles towards the city of Elat, in the south of Israel. The attack comes just hours after the Israeli bombardment on the port of Hodeida, in Yemen, which left at least three dead and ninety wounded, according to Houthi health authorities. The military spokesman for the pro-Iranian militia, Yahya Sarea, said in a statement that they had fired the missiles against “important targets” in Elat, although he did not specify which ones.
Sarea says the operation was carried out “successfully”, although the Israeli military had previously confirmed the claim that it had intercepted a missile approaching Israel from Yemen. The Houthi spokesman also stated that, this morning, they launched “several ballistic missiles and drones” that “impacted” the ship “Pumba”, which was transiting the Red Sea in the direction of Malaysia. He insisted that the rebels have “full right to defend” Yemen against the “aggression” of the United States and the United Kingdom, but also “against Israeli aggression”, referring to this Saturday’s attack on Hodeida .
Climbing in the region
Iran condemned Israel’s attack on the port of Hodeida late Saturday and warned that the “dangerous Israeli adventures” could lead to “an escalation and expansion of the war”, in the words of the spokesman Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic, Naser Kananí. “The oppressed, but strong, people of Yemen are paying the price for their noble support for the innocent people of Gaza,” Kananí said.
Yemen’s internationally recognized government also condemned the attack, saying it would “further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis” in the Arab country. The government, which is based in Aden, in the south of the country, says in a statement that “the attack on Hodeida is a “clear violation of all international laws and norms” and holds Israel responsible for “any repercussions” that the bombing In addition, they accuse Tel-Aviv of “strengthening the position of these militias (Houthis) and their misleading propaganda narratives”.
Yemen has been mired in civil war since 2014, when the Houthis rebelled against the internationally recognized government and controlled large areas of the country’s center, north and west. In this conflict, which has led to the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to the UN, different Middle Eastern powers are involved on opposing sides. While the Houthi, Shiite rebels, receive support from Iran, the internationally recognized government receives help from an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia.
This is why Saudi Arabia wanted to disassociate itself from Israel’s attack on Hodeida. In a statement, the spokesman for the Saudi defense ministry, Turki al-Maliki, assured that the Arab country “has no relationship or participation in the attack in Hodeida”. Al Maliki also referred to rumors that Israel would have been allowed to use Saudi airspace to attack Yemen, and he assured that “the Kingdom will not allow any entity to violate its airspace.”
For his part, the Israeli foreign minister, Israel Katz, has affirmed this Sunday through a tweet that he is working to “emphasize the importance and necessity of Israel’s actions against the Houthis and to highlight the responsibility Iran’s direct involvement in the aggression of the Houthi terrorists against Israel”.
These are words in line with those of the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who this Saturday, after the attack on Hodeida, called on the international community to “support Israel’s fight against Iran and the its metastases”. The Prime Minister plans to travel to Washington this Monday and meet with the President of the United States, Joe Biden, on Tuesday.
The violence does not stop in Gaza
The hostilities with Yemen have not stopped Israel, which attacked the Gaza Strip again tonight. Specifically, the Israeli army, which claims to have carried out “selective operations on several military structures”, hit the Bureij refugee camp this night, where at least seven people died.
Israeli forces have also advanced positions north and west of Rafah, where the military reports they have found more “terrorist infrastructure” in the area. Israel, which two months ago began a ground incursion against the city at the southern end of the Strip, already controls the south and east of the town.
Source: www.ara.cat
